Divorce with three kids? I'll build a house and eat meat, driving my in-laws crazy.

Chapter 169 What crime should be committed for deceiving Constable Xing?

Xiao Wu shook his head. "No."

Chu Xiu knew that Constable Xing had gone to arrest the murderer, but Magistrate Chu did not hide this from him.

Two days have passed since Officer Xing left, and there's still no sign of him, though his subordinates have all returned.

Chu Xiu was vaguely worried.

Xiao Wu comforted him, "Young Master, Constable Xing is highly skilled in martial arts, he should be fine."

He wasn't worried about Officer Xing at all; he was more worried about his godmother.

With such heavy rain, I wonder if my godmother's house is leaking, and if she has any food left at home.

The two were chatting casually when a sudden exclamation came from outside the door.

"Officer Xing is back!"

Officer Xing had lost a lot of weight and looked extremely haggard. He had just returned and hadn't even settled in when Magistrate Chu summoned him away.

Chu Xiu and Xiao Wu secretly ran to the door to eavesdrop.

inside the house.

Officer Xing knelt down with a thud and said, "Please forgive me, sir. I failed in my duty and did not catch up with that person."

Magistrate Chu was not too disappointed with the result. A murderer who had been on the run for many years would naturally hide at the slightest hint of trouble.

It would be strange if Constable Xing could catch him on the first try.

Magistrate Chu stroked his beard and said, "You may get up now. This is not your fault!"

Officer Xing was somewhat moved, and his eyes reddened slightly as he stood up and said, "Sir, I did not come away empty-handed this time. During the investigation, I discovered a major clue."

"Oh? Tell me."

"I saw Granny Li when I passed through Chenjia Village."

"Aunt Li? Is that the Aunt Li that Xiu'er mentioned?"

"Yes, Aunt Li said he saw a person with a mole on his finger."

"who is it?"

"Manager Qian."

“The manager of the Qian family's money shop? Qian…” Magistrate Chu tried hard to recall the name of Manager Qian, but after thinking for a long time, he still couldn’t remember it.

“Qian Lai,” said the head constable.

"Are you sure it's him?" Magistrate Chu asked. "Can you really trust the words of a village woman?"

Officer Xing said with difficulty, "Sir, I think that Granny Li is a sincere person and doesn't seem to be lying. Besides, she has no reason to lie."

At the time, Aunt Li didn't know his purpose and was still smiling as she brought him food and drinks; she seemed like just a kind village woman.

"Human hearts are unpredictable." Magistrate Chu took a sip of tea, stood up, and said, "Go and meet that Qian Lai."

"Yes, I'll take care of it right away." Constable Xing bowed and left the study, almost bumping into Chu Xiu and Xiao Wu who were eavesdropping.

Xiao Wu was about to apologize awkwardly when Chu Xiu quickly covered his mouth and dragged Constable Xing away a long way.

After confirming that his father couldn't see, he said, "Officer Xing, are you going to find Manager Qian? I'll go with you."

“I’ll go too,” Xiao Wu said.

Officer Xing was in a real bind. It was bad enough that the young master was eavesdropping on his conversation with the master, but he was caught red-handed and didn't even flinch. Now he was making such an unreasonable request.

"Young master, you should stay in the county government office. It's raining heavily, so don't get wet."

After saying this, seeing that Chu Xiu did not respond, he cupped his hands and said, "This humble servant will take his leave now."

He turned and ran off without even opening his umbrella.

Chu Xiu watched his retreating figure and said, "It's alright if he doesn't take us; we'll just follow him."

Xiao Wu said with difficulty, "Young Master, Master said you are not allowed to go out. We haven't caught those bandits from last time yet."

Chu Xiu glared at him, "With you here, what am I afraid of?"

Xiao Wu sighed deeply, feeling the responsibility on his shoulders grow even heavier.

Soon, Manager Qian was summoned to the county office by Constable Xing. That was perfect; Xiao Wu and Chu Xiu didn't even need to leave the house, and they could eavesdrop again.

The two of them pressed their faces against the doorway, listening intently to any sounds coming from inside.

Officer Xing pushed the teacup on the table toward Manager Qian and said, "Manager Qian, I'm really sorry to have troubled you to make this trip in this heavy rain."

Shopkeeper Qian took the teacup and smiled, saying, "I wonder what I've done wrong? It's too much trouble for Constable Xing to make this trip in person. Please pass on the message, and I'll be right there."

Officer Xing went to his family's money exchange to find him, which made him lose face.

When the depositors saw this, they thought his money shop was going to go bankrupt, and several of them turned around and left on the spot.

The constable smiled insincerely and said, "Manager Qian, it's not me looking for you, it's the clerk. You two chat, I'll just have some tea and then leave."

He said he was leaving, but in reality he just drank tea and had no intention of leaving.

The clerk coughed and said, "Manager Qian, don't overthink it. It's nothing serious. I just wanted to talk to you about your tax payment."

Manager Qian breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Your Excellency is wise. Although I dare not say that I am the merchant who pays the most taxes, I am certainly the most proactive in paying them."

The person who pays the most taxes in Pingchuan County is naturally Master Bai. Although Manager Qian's business is quite large, he still doesn't rank in the top five.

The clerk looked at the booklet again and again, and after a long while said, "Manager Qian has done a good job."

Shopkeeper Qian was delighted. "Then, sir, is there anything else?"

The advisor pushed the pastries in front of him and said, "Is Manager Qian very busy? Why are you in such a hurry to leave?"

Manager Qian quickly waved his hand, "No, no."

He didn't like the county government office; he felt a sense of gloom as soon as he entered.

In particular, Constable Xing always stared at him intentionally or unintentionally, which gave him goosebumps.

The two chatted about various things, and the advisor told Boss Qian to do business properly, pay taxes properly, and not to think about cheating or swindling.

Manager Qian said he would definitely do as instructed.

When there was really nothing left to talk about, the advisor finally let him leave.

Manager Qian breathed a sigh of relief, and two servants outside the door quickly helped his master walk out.

As soon as Manager Qian left, Chu Xiu and Xiao Wu rushed into the house.

Chu Xiu asked anxiously, "How is it? Is it him?"

Officer Xing shook his head and said, "He doesn't have a mole on his hand."

"How could that be?" Chu Xiu raised his voice. His godmother wouldn't lie.

Officer Xing said helplessly, "I looked very carefully just now, and there really isn't any."

The clerk put down the booklet and asked, "Young master, do you have some deep-seated grudge against that Manager Qian?"

"No," Chu Xiu shook his head.

"Then... why do you seem to really want him to be the murderer?" the advisor asked.

Xiao Wu said with a stern face, "How dare you talk like that? My young master just wants the bad guys to be caught as soon as possible."

The advisor didn't say anything more.

Suddenly, with a creak, the door was pushed open.

The tall figure of Magistrate Chu appeared at the door. He looked at Chu Xiu and said irritably, "What nonsense are you spouting now?"

When the clerk and Constable Xing saw that the father and son were about to start arguing again, they quickly tucked their tails between their legs and headed for the door.

"Master, please continue your conversation. I shall take my leave now."

"Stop!" Magistrate Chu pointed at Chu Xiu and said, "You two tell him what kind of person that Granny Li is."

The constable forced a smile and said, "Young master, the clue provided by Aunt Li is indeed useless. I don't know why she lied."

The master has come to interrogate him, so he probably already knows about the young master's eavesdropping, and he has nothing left to hide.

He paused for a moment and then added, "There's also that Xiao Yishan. He said he saw Manager Qian's group of men in Chenjia Village, but I chased after them for a long time and found nothing."

Magistrate Chu, his face darkening, said, "Xiu'er, did you hear that? Granny Li is full of lies, deceiving the officials. What is her punishment?"

(End of this chapter)